Critical Care Newsline — July 21, 2011

Critical Care Newsline, the electronic newsletter from the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses, contains information selected just for you by our clinical practice experts. In each issue, you’ll find links to resources, research abstracts (individual sites may require registration and a fee to access complete articles) and websites that will keep you informed on issues affecting nurses and the nursing profession.

1. COMING SOON AACN website gets new look and feel
In the near future, you will notice changes to the AACN website, which will include a wider design, easier access to popular and relevant resources, and quick links to features from a new sidebar column. Look for these changes soon, and enjoy the newly enhanced user experience.

2. CALL TO ACTION AACN Circle of Excellence Award nominations close Aug. 1
Do you know a peer who makes a difference in the lives of patients and families? Nominate him or her for a 2012 AACN Circle of Excellence Award. Up to 25 recipients will be selected to receive a $1,000 honorarium and be inducted into the Circle of Excellence Society. Nominations close Monday, Aug. 1. Learn more and nominate.

3. CALL TO ACTION Share certification best practices, qualify as NTI panelist
If your facility or chapter has successfully implemented certification best practices — strategies to encourage, recognize and reward certification, submit your story online by Friday, Sept. 30. AACN will select the two most innovative practices for panel presentation during the “Creating a Culture of Certification: Best Practices Roundtable” at the 2012 National Teaching Institute & Critical Care Exposition (NTI), Saturday through Thursday, May 19-24, Orlando, Fla. AACN Certification Corporation accepts best-practices submissions year-round, which are available to view online.

4. CALL TO ACTION Participate in research utilization survey
Contributing to nursing research is an important part of our professional practice. The KAP — Knowledge, Attitudes and Practice — Research Utilization Survey with 33 questions will help improve the teaching steps of research utilization. Please take about 15 minutes to participate anonymously.

5. RESOURCE Discounts on VitalSmarts workshops for AACN members
AACN members save 20 percent on registration for the “Crucial Conversations,” “Crucial Confrontations” and “Influencer Training” two-day workshops sponsored by VitalSmarts, Provo, Utah. Learn best practices and tools for managing high-stakes interactions in “Crucial Conversations.” Get step-by-step processes to identify and resolve performance gaps in “Crucial Confrontations” and gain knowledge about creating positive, lasting change in your organization with “Influencer Training.” Find a scheduled workshop near you. Enter the code “AACN20” to receive the discount at checkout.

7. EVIDENCE NEJM study doesn’t recommend nesiritide for routine use in HF
“Nesiritide cannot be recommended for routine use in the broad population of patients with acute heart failure (HF),” concludes a randomized study of 7,141 patients in July 7’s New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM). Compared to placebo, nesiritide did not reduce mortality and was associated with higher rates of hypotension, states “Effect of Nesiritide in Patients With Acute Decompensated Heart Failure.”

9. EVIDENCE CHEST reports study of oxygen for COPD air-travel patients
July’s CHEST states that compressed oxygen with continuous flow or an oxygen-conserving device are equally effective for patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) who need to travel by air, and both are more effective than a portable oxygen concentrator. “COPD and Air Travel: Oxygen Equipment and Preflight Titration of Supplemental Oxygen” also reports that the hypoxia-altitude simulation test can be used to identify patients who need supplemental oxygen.

11. CALL TO ACTION Save Nov. 9-12 for Progressive Care Pathways conference
Do you work in progressive care, including intermediate care, direct observation, stepdown, telemetry, transitional or emergency care? Do you work in a medical-surgical area of a hospital that doesn’t have progressive care? Then mark your calendar for Nov. 9-12 to attend the AACN Progressive Care Pathways conference in Las Vegas. Request a brochure.

12. NEWS Critical Care Societies Collaborative sets ICU telemedicine research agenda
“The Research Agenda in ICU Telemedicine: A Statement From the Critical Care Societies Collaborative” in July’s CHEST recommends that future research address causation rather than “simply associations” and highlight action mechanisms “to determine exactly how ICU telemedicine achieves its effects.” The collaborative proposes “an agenda to advance the science of ICU telemedicine and generate research with the greatest potential to improve patient care.”

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